David Kilgour has released three albums on Arch Hill, Frozen Orange (2005), The Far Now (2007) and Falling Debris - featuring the poetry of Sam Hunt (2009)

As a teenager in the late 1970's David Kilgour and his brother Hamish, inspired by the independent do-it-yourself spirit of punk rock and the simple yet dissonant songwriting of Lou Reed and Bob Dylan, formed The Clean in their hometown of Dunedin. The Clean went on to become one of New Zealand’s most popular and most respected bands. Their legend as one of the founding fathers of one of the most influential "scenes" in underground music quickly spread to all corners of the globe.

In 1992, Kilgour struck out on his own and recorded his first solo CD (Here Come The Cars), which received much critical acclaim and is a bona-fide New Zealand classic. Two more solo LPs followed, Sugar Mouth in 1994 and David Kilgour and The Heavy Eights in 1997. Kilgour followed that up in 2002 with his fourth solo LP, A Feather In The Engine.

All along the way, over a career that spans the course of two decades, David Kilgour has come to be known as one of the most respected and admired songwriters of his generation. His signature guitar style and languid, carefree melodies are readily identifiable. The canon of work he has amassed is stunning in its grandeur and depth. In January of 2001, David was awarded the New Zealand Order of Merit, to recognize and honor his contributions to the arts and cultural heritage.

Frozen Orange was a slight departure for Kilgour - not so much in style as in method. The idea for the record came about as David was touring the States with both the Clean and solo in late 2001 and early 2002. The 2002 tour in support of A Feather In The Engine featured David as the opening act for his American label Merge mates Lambchop. For the tour, Kilgour recruited several members of the eclectic Nashville collective to serve as his backing band. The experiment was a huge success. During rehearsals in Nashville, David also met Lambchop producer/engineer Mark Nevers, who convinced David that perhaps he should come to Nashville to record. It was an intriguing proposition as Kilgour had never dreamed that he would ever get the chance to record in Music City USA.

David had already written several songs that he was planning to use for his next album, but the plan had been to record the album back in New Zealand with his long-time collaborators, The Heavy Eights (Taane Tokona, Alan Haig, Tony De-ard and Thomas Bell). But the lure of a chance to record in Nashville with his new American friends was strong. In June of 2003 Creative New Zealand provided a small grant for the Nashville "experiment". The result is Frozen Orange. The album was recorded almost entirely by Mark Nevers at his Beechhouse Studios in Nashville (2 tracks-"Dogs Barking" and "A Head Full Of Rolling Stones"- were recorded with the Heavy Eights back home in New Zealand), over the course of two visits in the summer and late fall of 2003. Frozen Orange features the contributions of Lamchop members Matt Swanson, Tony Crow, William Tyler and Sam Baker. There is even a surprise appearance by Jason Loewenstein. The album showcases a sublime combination of Kilgour's signature guitar lines and shambolic, quirky melodies with an added twist of country twang and a little bit of R&B/soul courtesy of his friends in Nashville. Frozen Orange also marks the first time that Kilgour has relinquished control in the studio to an outside producer; such was his faith in Nevers and his vision for the project.

Nice work DAVID KILGOUR & THE HEAVY EIGHTS - their excellent album Left By Soft is in the David Malitz of the Washington Post's top 10 albums of 2011

David Kilgour Vinyl Redeem Page

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Here is a new video for DAVID KILGOUR & THE HEAVY EIGHTS - "A Break In The Weather"

DAVID KILGOUR in the LA Times:

Below is a story in the Los Angeles Times regarding David Kilgour's upcoming US tour with Richard Buckner

"David Kilgour makes his guitar do a wondrous array of fantastic magic tricks on his new album, Left by Soft. The New Zealand native isn't a flashy soloist, and he dazzles not with speed or volume but by cleverly juxtaposing disparate sounds into a multihued mosaic. He cracks open hazily trippy tracks like "Diamond Mine" and "A Break in the Weather," and bolts of radiant sunlight spill out like juice bursting from an orange. Kilgour gives good jangle on "Purple Balloon," transforms a simple acoustic folk riff into a mesmerizing exotic swirl on "Theme" and swallows "a bucket of words" on the languidly romantic ballad "Pop Song....." read the full story here

David Kilgour - Living in Space, Directed by Bridget Sutherland in Nashville during the recording of the album 'Frozen Orange'

DAVID KILGOUR and Richard Buckner will team up for a co-headlining tour beginning August 16 in Los Angeles! Don’t miss this opportunity to see two legendary songwriters and guitar “gods” share the stage!

Also, David Kilgour & the Heavy Eights have just released a live video for the title track off their latest release, Left by Soft. David shares some details about the video and his one-of-a-kind guitar:

“We were playing at the Empire in Dunedin, an old bar that only holds abut 140 people and was made famous by the old Dunedin Sound-ers. The guitar I’m playing is a hybrid—the neck is off an oldish Epiphone acoustic, and the body was made by a guitar dude called Rob Scott. One weird thing about it is that the pickups sit on rails, so I can move them to whatever position/sound I want. It has the sound of mountains collapsing, especially at volume.”

Watch David Kilgour & the Heavy Eights perform “Left by Soft” live in New Zealand

Richard Buckner’s new album Our Blood is available for pre-order on CD and LP now in the Merge store. While supplies last, Our Blood pre-orders come with a limited-edition “Don’t Blame Me I Voted for Richard Buckner” bumper sticker! Also, David Kilgour’s new album Left by Soft is available on CD and digital download now in the Merge store.